‘Modern Family” may win the Best Comedy Series Emmy every year — but it can’t even touch “The Big Bang Theory,” at least in terms of viewers.
The Chuck Lorre comedy was TV’s top scripted series for the just-concluded season, averaging nearly 20 million viewers to edge out CBS stablemate “NCIS.” It was also the number-one scripted show in the adults 18-to-49 demo (with 7.8 million viewers).
The top-ranked show of the year was “NBC Sunday Night Football,” with 21.6 million viewers and a 9.9 in adults 18-to-49 — showing the power of live sporting events.
The steep decline of “American Idol,” which was once counted among the most popular shows, has allowed for two freshman shows — NBC’s “The Blacklist” (15 million viewers) and ABC’s mid-season replacement “Resurrection” (13 million) — to find a place in TV’s top 20.
(Fox’s “Sleepy Hollow” and ABC’s “Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.” also ranked in the top 20, but only among viewers 18-to-49.)
It was also a very good year for NBC’s “The Voice.” Both the Monday and Tuesday editions of the Mark Burnett talent show landed in the top 10 most popular shows, in total viewers and in the demo.
Some series that are coming back in the fall fared worse in the ratings than those that were cancelled. On CBS, “The Crazy Ones,” which is now defunct, outranked “Mike & Molly,” “The Amazing Race” and “Mom” — suggesting the network brass really didn’t like the sitcom starring Robin Williams in his series TV return.
Fox had the fewest programs in the Top 20 — only the Wednesday version of “Idol”— and CBS had the most Top 20 shows (five): “Big Bang,” “NCIS,” “NCIS: LA,” “Person of Interest” and “Blue Bloods.”
Meanwhile, Shonda Rhimes continues to be the biggest star at ABC. Her two shows, “Grey’s Anatomy” and “Scandal,” both placed in the Top 20 among total viewers and in the 18-to-49 demo.